by Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY Sports

by Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY Sports

Duke beats Miami (Fla.) by 18 points and moves into the top 25. USC fans rush the field after the Trojans' win against Stanford. Baylor, Missouri, Duke and UCF exit Week 12 with a clear path to a Bowl Championship Series berth. Again, Duke beats Miami, moves into the top 25 and sits in range of the BCS. It's been that kind of season.

At least the very top of the USA TODAY Sports 1-125 re-ranking can provide some consistency. For the second week in a row, the top four remains unchanged: Florida State, Alabama, Ohio State and Baylor. It's from No. 5 through the bottom that things get dicey, however.

Stanford's turn as the top-ranked one-loss team lasted one week.. Next up is Oregon, which was sitting comfortably in second place before losing to the Cardinal on Nov. 7. But Oregon faces a stiff challenge from fellow one-loss teams like Auburn, Missouri and Clemson â?? and from Auburn in particular. The Tigers are particularly intriguing: Currently sitting in sixth, Gus Malzahn's bunch could leap into the top three by beating Alabama on Nov. 30. (And given the nature of the 2013 season, such a scenario wouldn't come as much of a surprise.)